Animals
S


Ladybug

Rare 3-Foot Spitting Earthworm Found in Legal Battle

Charles Q. Choi
livescience.com
Tue, 29 Jan 2008 10:23 UTC
A rare 3-foot-long spitting earthworm that smells like lilies is at the heart of a legal battle between conservationists and the U.S. government.

When taxonomist Frank Smith discovered the giant Palouse earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) in 1897 by, he described it as "very abundant." Nowadays, however, sightings of the worm are rare.

The only recent confirmed worm sighting was made in 2005 by a University of Idaho researcher. Before that, the giant worm had not been spotted in 17 years, since 1988.

©Yaniria Sanchez-de Leon/University of Idaho (c) 2005
The large, light-colored worm at the top is the giant Palouse earthworm, Driloleirus americanus. Below is the southern worm or Aporrectodea trapezoides, an introduced species.
Read More...
Bug

This Beetle Really Rocks

Jeanna Bryner
livescience.com
Tue, 29 Jan 2008 10:18 UTC
A new species of beetle that appears as if wearing a tuxedo has been named in honor of the late rock 'n' roll legend Roy Orbison and his widow Barbara.

Entomologist Quentin Wheeler of Arizona State University announced the discovery and naming of the beetle, now dubbed Orectochilus orbisonorum, during a Roy Orbison Tribute Concert on Jan. 25.

The ending of the species name, "orum," denotes it was named after a couple. If the beetle were just named after Roy it would end in "i," and for just Barbara, the name would end in "ae."

©Charles J. Kazilek, Arizona State University
This lateral view shows the new species of whirligig beetle, revealing its divided eyes (above and below the water line) and its white underside.
Read More...
Ambulance

Dead Migratory Birds in Cooch Behar West Bengal


Recombinomics
Wed, 23 Jan 2008 18:29 UTC
In Cooch Behar district, the district's animal resources department sources said deaths of chicken were reported at Khalisamari of Mathabhanga-I block. ARD sources in the district said that bird deaths were reported from four blocks out of 12. These were Dinhata-I, Cooch Behar-I, Mathabhanga-I and Mekhliganj. In Haribhanga of Cooch Behar-I, carcasses of 10 migratory birds were found yesterday. The samples were sent to Kolkata.
Read More...
Bug

The lowdown on topsoil: It's disappearing

Tom Paulson
seattlepi.com
Tue, 22 Jan 2008 07:57 UTC
Disappearing dirt rivals global warming as an environmental threat

The planet is getting skinned.

While many worry about the potential consequences of atmospheric warming, a few experts are trying to call attention to another global crisis quietly taking place under our feet.

Call it the thin brown line. Dirt. On average, the planet is covered with little more than 3 feet of topsoil -- the shallow skin of nutrient-rich matter that sustains most of our food and appears to play a critical role in supporting life on Earth.
Read More...
Frog

Weirdest and most endangered creatures

Paul Eccleston
Telegraph
Mon, 21 Jan 2008 01:31 UTC


©Arne Hodauc/Network for Giant Salamnader Conservation
Olm (left) a blind salamander and Chinese giant salamander (right) that can grow up to 1.8m in length

They could all merit a place in a gallery of Nature's strangest creatures. But apart from their strange looks and shapes they have one thing in common - they are all in danger of extinction.
Read More...
Arrow Down

UK: Honeybees may be wiped out in 10 years

Jasper Copping
Telegraph
Sun, 20 Jan 2008 15:24 UTC
Honeybees will die out in Britain within a decade as virulent diseases and parasites spread through the nation's hives, experts have warned.

Whole colonies of bees are already being wiped out, with current methods of pest control unable to stop the problem.
Read More...
Roses

Huge New Palm Found -- "Flowers Itself to Death"

Sara Goudarzi
National Geographic News
Sun, 20 Jan 2008 01:19 UTC


©John Dransfield
This new species of palm, found recently in northwestern Madagascar, goes out with a bang. Once fully grown, the giant Tahina spectabilis produces a vibrant display of flowers - an act that depletes its nutrients and sparks a slow death. The apparently rare palm lives in areas where habitat has already been degraded, making conservation a priority, scientists say.

A couple on a casual stroll in Madagascar recently discovered a new gigantic palm that flowers itself to death.

Taller than a six-story building, with a trunk 1.5 feet (0.5 meter) in diameter, it is the most massive palm discovered to date in Madagascar.
Read More...
Sherlock

'Extinct' raccoon dogs detected in Russia's Altai Mountains


RIA Novosti
Wed, 16 Jan 2008 17:31 UTC
Raccoon dogs thought extinct in the Altai Mountains since the early 1950s have been again detected in Russia's south Siberian Altai Republic, a source in the regional government said on Wednesday.

Traces of an unknown dog-like creature had previously been detected by Russian biologist Genrikh Sobansky near Lake Teletskoye in the northeastern part of the republic. He later came to the conclusion that the trail belonged to a raccoon dog, an animal which looks much like the North American raccoon, but is only distantly related.
Read More...
Cow Skull

Water buffalo gores four during Vietnam rampage


Associated Press
Wed, 16 Jan 2008 01:41 UTC
An enraged water buffalo went on an hourlong rampage in northern Vietnam, goring four people and destroying food stalls before being shot to death by police, officials said Tuesday. Crowds of curious onlookers scattered for safety after the 450-kilogram beast gored the villagers during a 3-mile tear Monday. No one was seriously injured.
Read More...
Alarm Clock

Beetles May Wipe Out Colorado Lodgepoles

Ivan Moreno
Associated Press
Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:53 UTC
Denver, Colorado - Strands of distressed, red pine trees across northern Colorado and the Front Range are a visible testament to the bark beetle infestation that officials said will kill most of the state's lodgepole pine trees within 5 years.
Read More...